NEWS RELEASES
Editor's Note: This news item was retrieved and first published through Trade Only Today's website.
Florida wildlife managers changed fishing regulations in Biscayne National Park, after two decades of debate. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission approved new rules Wednesday that recreational fishing advocates said will create a better balance between declining fish populations and preserving access to anglers. The FWC and the National Park Service agreed that FWC would develop fishing regulations for the park with the goal of increasing the size and abundance of targeted species by at least 20 percent, according to FWC.Trade Only Today writer, Regina Haynes, covers in her article, "FWC staff and commissioners decided that closing areas of the park to fishing is a measure of last resort that will only be considered if all other conservation efforts fail during the next five years, an approach that the fishing industry supported." The new rules will go into effect July 1. Some of the new rules include: establishing a trap-free zone near park headquarters, establishing inshore and offshore no-trawl zones within the park, and establishing coral reef protection areas in the park Park where traps and lobstering would be prohibited year-round.To read more on Biscayne National Park, click here.